All that is Beautiful
by Rosabell
Summary: When the Exile left for the Unknown Regions, her ship is nearly destroyed as she left the galaxy. However, as luck would have it, there is more than one galaxy in this universe, and the Normandy is about to obtain a very special crewmember...
1. Prologue

All that is Beautiful

Prologue

_Hull breach, Shields at two percent, left thruster offline-_

She worked with an urgency she did not feel, keying in commands to reroute power. Inside she felt calm, almost serene. She mused that the ship probably stood a better chance of surviving if her friends were onboard. Having multiple people seeing to the problems would save precious time.

As it was, she was alone.

She left without saying goodbye. She had hesitated for a long time, contemplating if she should and if so, how. Kreia had told her that she owed nothing more to the galaxy upon the demise of the three Sith Lords. She could wander at her leisure for the rest of her days without weighing on her conscience. True, she was young, and she had many years in which she could be useful, but in her few thirty years she had already done so much for the galaxy; no one could expect her to do more. She did not have to fight the True Sith. She did not even have to fight anyone, really. She could head to the now beautified Telos and spend the rest of her life in retirement. A Jedi, retiring. It would have been laughable, if she were truly a Jedi.

She did not have to leave her friends behind, to exile herself once more into the Unknown Regions, into the life of continued loneliness...

The truth was, however, that she had no heart left to cope with her companions. The deaths of so many at Malachor V left her soul battered, the pain of the loss shredding her will. How dearly had she needed comfort then! How dearly had she needed love and support, to be nurtured and cared for! Yet when she returned to the home of her childhood, to the place she grew up surrounded by the closest things to family short of blood and bone, she had been rejected, outcast, banished. The Council, she knew, feared what she could do to the Force. A wound, they called her, and one capable of killing it. They had no regard for how deeply she had suffered, how much she needed a mother, a father, a brother, a sister, to help her to come to terms with the catastrophe, the trauma. She had left seeing nothing but darkness in her future, empty of the Force without knowing why, feeling that she was being punished for her crimes. When the Force was returned to her, she thought she could begin to heal, but after ten years, it was too late. Even fighting alongside her newfound friends, drinking, laughing, and weeping together, that wound in her heart never healed. They all had their share of pain, but she was weary. She had carried the burden of her past for ten years on her own. She had simply lost the desire to find joy in life. As the Lost Jedi began to build a new Jedi Order, she watched them as if from afar. They were creating a world she could not be part of. A world she had helped make possible, but a world that she cannot live in. She watched them grow and move on and felt, more and more, that her duty to this galaxy was fulfilled, and that she had no other purpose left. The truth was, she had died along with all those casualties on Malachor V. Her body simply did not realize it yet.

And so, when the time came, when her friends finished their training and were ready to start their new lives, she decided to die. That she venture into the Unknown Regions to seek Revan had only been the means to that end. She did not intend to survive. She did not intend to return.

All are alone in their hour of death, and so she left them quietly, with no show or final words. A tranquil parting. She knew they would be hurt, but for once, she will indulge herself. It felt right, to leave without saying goodbye. She felt like a fading memory, and memories never bid farewell before they disappear.

So when the ship encountered dark energies that rocked the hull and killed the engines, she was not afraid. She worked to save the ship only because it was something ingrained in her. If the ship failed, she will die for certain, and she will pass into the Force as she had hoped for all along.

_Shields dropped. All engines offline. Life support systems offline._

A sudden, unexpected static interrupted her state of mind.

*_Ssst-_Normandy-_Ssst-_Copy? Repeat, this is-*

How odd. She did not expect to receive radio signal at the Unknown Regions. Was it Revan? She pressed the comm system, but there was no power in the ship. All at once, the cockpit became cold.

*_Ssst-_This is the SSV-_Sst-_mandy. Do you copy? Our systems -_Ssst-_dicate you are in need of assist-_Sst*_

The air pressure abruptly fell. Something collided with the ship, causing it to rock. She was thrown into the pilot's chair. Her lungs seemed to collapse and she could not draw air, but she was not afraid.

She was not afraid. At long last, after so many years, she was finally going home.

She closed her eyes.


	2. Chapter One

All that is Beautiful

Chapter One

" What do you think?" Joker asked, as Tali stood behind his chair. Normally the quarian is settled down in engineering, but right now no one seemed to be in their usual haunts. Well, except Joker. And Dr. Chakwas.

" About what, exactly?" The quarian inquired.

" I mean, at least she's hot," Said the pilot, knowing full well that Tali understood his question, " I mean _really _hot. At least once they took off that oriental-esque costume of hers. But seriously, going through all that trouble to rescue _one _passenger? And what was she even doing, flying a ship by herself? Did she space all her crewmembers or something?"

" Well, now I've lost track of which question to answer."

" How about all of them?"

Tali tilted her head. " I don't know. It's not like Shepard would just abandon someone if there's a hope of saving them. We shouldn't be surprised that the same went for that woman."

" Yeah, I guess." Joker scowled. " But when we dock, I'm going to pamper the ship's hull. That was seriously not fun. I mean it. And I hope the commander doesn't get another mission that has us traveling at the edge of the galaxy again for a while. I can use a break between killer asteroid fields. I'm normally pretty good with asteroid fields, but that was one _killer _asteroid field. Even the Omega Relay wasn't that bad!"

" I'm surprised you would admit it." Tali's voice sounded amused. " Are you actually saying that you couldn't handle a little debris in space with a full crew, while that woman we picked up manage to survive all by herself?"

" Hey hey hey, did you _see _the state of that ship? There's no comparison. Besides, you've got to be an absolute _idiot _to try to fly over there all by yourself. I'm still the best pilot in the universe."

" Last I heard, you were the best pilot in the galaxy."

" I'm expanding my horizons."

" Hello Garrus." Tali suddenly greeted.

Joker repressed a groan as the turian inquired, " What's our ETA?"

" Hey, folks, I'm good but I'm not a god, as awesome as that would be! We just narrowly escaped getting shredded by dark matter and giant rocks in space! I'm still recalibrating things so that we can make the jump! Jesus!"

" Is Shepard alright?" Tali asked.

" Upset," Garrus replied brusquely. " And no doubt recollecting the last time the Normandy literally fell apart."

Joker shuddered. That was a memory not even _he _wanted to contemplate. He could still remember looking out from the window of the escape pod, the image of fire and the dark silhouette of a human figure spinning into the vaccuum.

" I think Shepard sees herself in that woman." Tali mused.

" You're telling me. As soon as we arrive, I'm dragging her off the ship. She hasn't left the medbay and I have a feeling Chakwas doesn't appreciate that."

" Alright." Joker announced, and it was then that he realized that the ever-opiniated EDI had been silent all this time. " Uh, EDI? Mass effect core? Engagement? Hello?"

The blue sphere flickered to life. " Yes, Mr. Moreau. Engaging mass effect core."

The ship vibrated violently, causing Joker to curse. " I thought I fixed that two seconds ago! Oh well." This was correspondingly followed by a loud curse from someone Joker _definitely _did not expect in the cockpit.

" How long before we arrive? I feel like getting wasted."

If it had been anyone else, Joker would have yelled and ranted, but this was Jack, and Joker definitely did not have a death wish.

" Uh, should be about seventy-three hours."

" Seventy-three..." Jack cursed. " What were you doing all this time, man? It's been five hours already!"

That was it. Death wish or not, Joker was _not _tolerating this kind of treatment.

" I was taking care of the ship while all you folks were gawking at the hottie in the medbay." He snapped. " That's what I was _doing._"

" Look, we're on our way, let's just get back to business as usual." Garrus suggested.

" Who made _you _the leader all of the sudden?" Jack demanded between oaths.

" Commander Shepard and XO Lawson." The turian's tone was very dry.

Joker swore in surprise. " Really? Miranda? Are you serious?"

Garrus left the cockpit without replying.

Joker whistled. " Wow. That makes _two _women gawking at a third. You think they find her hot too?"

" Goodbye, Joker." Tali remarked, laughter in her voice.

" Of course." Jack leaned over Joker's chair, the proximity making him nervous. " Though don't think Shepard swings that way." She swore. " Seventy-three. Ugh, why don't we get enough alcohol in this place?"

Joker refrained from commenting. It was EDI who spoke.

" It was deemed unwise to risk an inebriated crew while on duty, Jack."

Jack swore again. " What do we have to worry about 'inebri-' what's it when we have seventy-three hours with nothing to do?"

Joker was afraid Jack would actually hang around, something he _really _did not look forward to. Thankfully, she pushed off Joker's chair with another curse and left the cockpit.

" Oh God," Joker remarked to EDI, " I never want that to happen again. I don't get paid enough to deal with this."

ooooo

" You should rest," Chakwas said gently, but she shook her head. She was not sure why this whole situation affected her so, but she felt on edge, the way she had when she led her first mission. Except that time her anxiety actually made sense.

" Will she be alright?"

" She should be." Said the doctor. " She's healing very fast."

" Is she a biotic?"

" Not that I know."

" Shepard, I can handle things from here." Miranda urged. " I'll have EDI report to you as soon as she wakes."

Long seconds ticked by, the silence heavy as the commander contemplated her suggestion. Finally, a slow nod.

" Very well. Let me know if there is any change."

" Of course, Commander."

Shepard removed herself from the medbay with great reluctance. She entered the mess hall just in time to see Jack heading toward the main guns. The ex-convict did not see her, and Shepard was left wondering why the volatile biotic would want to see Garrus.

That was a question for later. Right now, she had to clear her mind. The elevator stopped at the deck and opened to reveal Mordin, going down.

" Why are you going to deck four?" Shepard asked in surprise.

" Need to borrow makeshift materials from engineering. Nothing too important, just some wires and couplers. Ah, wished to speak to you about our newest member. DNA samples match nothing in Citadel databases. Mass effect core retrieved from damaged ship very different from standard cores. Also, managed to decode some of the language that was used on the burned console. Pattern of symbols suggest a phonetic written language. Running comparisons to known galactic languages for further decoding."

" Is she human?"

" Yes. Female, teeth scans indicate just thirty years of age."

" What about that terminated laser beam we found on her?" Shepard had nearly burned her face off when she accidentally turned it on.

" Peculiar piece of technology. Power seems to come from crystal. Hesitate to disassemble it; construction appears complex. May require direct instruction from patient."

_A lot of things require direct questioning. _Shepard thought. She did not even know if this woman would speak any known human language. She did not carry an omnitool, or any translator that was recognizable.

Who knew that humans existed beyond this galaxy? The commander shook her head. She felt emotionally exhausted. Images flashed in her mind. Joker, in the cockpit, being stubborn. The escape pod, sending it out so that he would survive. The cold of space. The suffocation. Seeing the glowing white planet above her, the Normandy in pieces.

Death.

She had been simultaneously terrified and calm. It was like she had been split in two, one part fighting desperately to breathe, to _live_, feeling that hissing of precious air escaping and the panic of knowing that her lungs will collapse and her blood would start boiling as her suit depressurized, while the other part watched with calm detachment, even coming up with corny one-liners. _Well, if I had to die anyhow, getting blown up in space has got to be one of the cooler ways, somewhere under getting buried in a volcano. Nice view! At least you saved the wiseguy Joker. I _knew _I should have gone on a date when I had the chance..._

The strange thing was, when she first woke it felt like mere seconds had passed between succumbing to the void and seeing Wilson shouting frantically about her heartrate. As time went on, she began remembering more and more about the time in between her two lives. It was not so much a memory, or a vision, as simply the feeling of deep, profound _rest_. There was nothing happening, nothing moving, but it was not a cold nothingness. More like the deepest, most tranquil sleep she ever had. Her new body was full of power and energy thanks to the Cerberus upgrades, and at first she felt as much her old self as she ever was, perhaps even more. After a while, though, she began feeling strangely tired. Her determination and persistance allowed her to infiltrate the Omega Relay and come out intact, but after dealing with the idiotic bureaucracies and politics that was the Citadel, she grew more and more disinterested in everything.

So the Reapers are coming, and the Collectors were their slaves, and all of the galaxy is in danger and most of its inhabitants did not even know it. What did she care? She should not have to see this. She should have been dead, purged of all worries and concerns. She tried to motivate herself by thinking of the people she loved: Tali, Garrus, Liara, Chakwas, Joker; the new friends she made like Samara, Jacob, Miranda, even Jack and Grunt. She did not know whether to feel horrified or relieved that even this did little to inspire her.

Her soul was tired and had already left her body once. It was dragged back by some sort of technological witchcraft thanks to Cerberus and it really did not want to stay. Knowing what she knew, knowing what death really was like, it made Shepard wonder if all the times she refrained from killing, the times when she fought tooth and nail to save a life, was really worth it. Death was not so bad. Death was a reprieve. It was life that was the punishment. As she pointed out to Garrus when he wanted to kill Sidonis, a tired life is a far worse fate than a shot to the head.

Did she do the right thing? Should she have saved this woman flying alone on her ship if the woman was supposed to die? Was Shepard condemning her to the same fate she herself now suffered?

Perhaps the fact that the woman did not actually die yet would make all the difference.

The elevator opened, allowing Mordin to leave. Shepard waited for the doors to close and hit the button for her own cabin. She sucked in a breath and exhaled slowly. She had never been the one for regrets. Sometimes one did things in the heat of the moment, no matter the consequences, and that was inevitable in its own way. She had killed, and she had saved when she could, and she chose to save this strange woman that lay unconscious in her medbay. Cerberus chose to spend billions of credits to resurrect a dead Spectre and that allowed her to attack the Collectors in their very own haunt. Everything that happens in this universe occurs for a reason.

With any luck, time will prove that Shepard's decision to save this woman was the right one.


	3. Chapter Two

All that is Beautiful

Chapter Two

She was floating in a realm between sleep and consciousness, safely cuccooned from the outside world while being aware of everything. She could sense the life forms around her and hear the thrum of the engines below. Her arrival had brought turmoil, she knew. It seemed she always brought trouble to wherever she went, as much as she tried to make up for it. One individual in particular was most distraught. She wondered why.

She remembered someone calling for her, a voice speaking in a language she did not understand. Arms that hooked around her and lifted from her seat. Being jostled. Urgent yelling. The Force lurched around her in anticipation. Something was happening, Something important. It had to do with whoever saved her from the Ebon Hawk.

Now, the Force was calm. It felt languid around and within her, making her feel like a happy baby who had just been fed and was wrapped in warm blankets and slowly rocked. She felt more serene than she had been when her ship was falling apart around her, even though she could sense the pain in her rescuers.

They were not Force sensitive, but there was something strange about them. It was almost like the Force was working through different channels. There was one individual to whom everyone was linked. It was not a Force bond, but it was something as clear and obvious. This person, a human, was the one most distressed about everything, and her mood affected everyone around her, not because she was influencing them, but because they cared. The medic tending to the Jedi felt pressured, another woman was frustrated, some kind of alien was present at some point and seemed irritated and angry. One particularly angry individual seemed almost jealous and upset, and had been going up and down and all around the ship in a fit of restlessness.

The group reminded her a little of her own friends. Mira had been an angry, distrustful bounty hunter who would probably stomp around madly whenever she was worried. The medic was like Mical, collected even when anxious. The alien...

She was reminded of Atton, actually. In particular, one day when they were all meditating together at the Enclave, she was drawn out of her trance when everyone else suddenly gasped. She opened her eyes to them looking at her, all of them wearing expressions of varying levels of dismay. Out of all of them, though, it was Atton who felt the most turmoil, but one could never tell from his countenance. His face had become an impassive mask.

She had been baffled, to say the least. Her own meditation yielded nothing but the quiet of the Force, no visions that would warrant the reaction from the others.

_" What is it?"_ She had asked.

They did not answer her. Some, like Visas and Mical and Bao-Dur, simply continued to stare at her, or at least face her in the case of the Miraluka. Mira blinked rapidly and seemed to try to articulate some response without success. Surprisingly, she seemed to be at the verge of tears.

Atton rose from his meditative pose and walked out of the room.

_" What?_" She was so confused. What just happened? What did they see? Perhaps more puzzling, why did she not see the same thing?

The most disturbing thing was that everyone seemed angry at her about something afterwards. When she asked them what was wrong, none of they would reply, but there was a sudden barrier between her and her friends. All at once, they seemed to share something from which she was excluded. She had felt hurt, and this confirmed that she had no business being here anymore. Her friends, her students, had progressed somewhere she could not follow. They had all seen something she could not see, no matter how she meditated. She saw them drift away from her and her away from them.

She had loved them, and it was painful letting them go, but eventually she came to accept that she has lost them. One morning, she headed out to the gardens, to the place where she had learned about what she was and why she had been banished from the Jedi Order for ten long years. She looked at everything with a profound sense of sadness, and found herself burying the details of the bricks and stone into her mind. The path she had taken to reach the last three Jedi Masters. The flora that bloomed in the late spring, insects buzzing about their petals. In her mind she thought of the home of her childhood, the halls of the Jedi Temple filled with the laughter of children and the quiet of the Force. She had been a completely different person then, innocent of all the evils of the world, confident that everything will always be as peaceful and safe as it was within the temple walls. All at once she longed to return to that time, to become the naive person she had been. She longed for it with all of her being, so much so that it brought her down to her knees, and tears stung at her eyes.

_" I still remember meeting blondie here."_ Atton's voice had startled her then. He had avoided her ever since the vision, and after a few fruitless efforts to speak with him, she had stopped trying. He stood there now with his arms folded before him defensively, as his eyes stared over where years before, the three Jedi Masters stood passing judgment on her.

_" Atton." _She rose to her feet.

_" We were a good team, you know?" _He went on, still not looking at her. _" We had a mission, but it was more than that. We had each other and we trusted each other and for the longest time I actually thought it was enough. Old witch, you, me, One-Arm, that crazy Miraluka and, well, Mira's just Mira. I thought you were crazy, getting Mical. All spots were filled. He'd just get in the way, that is, if he doesn't replace one of us. And out of all of us, you know, I thought I was the one you didn't actually need. Who needs a scoundrel and an ex-Sith Assassin?"_

_" That's not true, Atton," _she started to say, but he cut her off.

_" No. It's not. I know that now." _He finally looked at her. _" Mical was never really a threat to any of us."_

She knew there had been more to his words, but for the life of her, she did not understand what it was.

_" Atton?"_

_" I'd go to the ends of the universe for you." _He said. _" Any of us would."_

She ducked her head, his words a piercing agony in her heart. _" I don't want you to think that way. I don't want any of you to go to the ends of the universe for me."_

_" Because you think you're not worth it." _Atton replied. _" You think in this galaxy, you're the only one who should go to the ends of the universe for everyone else. You pompous schutta."_

She stared at him in surprise. He had never insulted her like that. He did not even seem to be angry with her anymore, instead struggling with some internal turmoil.

_" Mical told me earlier, what the Jedi Masters said to you here." _Atton said.

She looked out at the garden in silence. She did not know what to say. Disquiet churned in her stomach. What did he want from her?

_" We don't follow you because you manipulated us or anything like that, you know. It's not like these Force bonds are always master and slave. That's the Sith's way of doing things, and you aren't a Sith; you never were. We allowed you to form the bond as much as you initiated it. But I think after all these years, I finally understand you." _He turned his body fully to her. _" You would never believe anything but the worst in yourself, because you are a coward. You are so scared of being wrong, of getting hurt again, that you don't consider that all of us are putting our hearts out for you, our souls, hoping beyond _anything _that you would take them for what they are."_

The years had made him wiser, and out of everyone, his personality might have changed the most. Every now and then he had a witty remark or an acerbic comment, usually reserved for Mical and sometimes to banter with Mira. Over time, training granted him the same inner glow that all Jedi share. His connection to the Force was strong, and she could sense his presence darkening in mourning. Mourning for what, she could not ascertain.

_" After everything you have done for us, we remain helpless when it came to what really mattered." _He sighed. _" But what am I saying? Your sight and hearing had been taken from you."_

He suddenly fell to his knees before her. She gasped and tried to urge him to rise, but he remained stubbornly in his pose.

_" Kiss me." _He did not tilt his head up far enough to lift his lips for her. His words sounded formal, more so when he called her by her old title rather than her name. _" Kiss me, Jedi Exile. A kiss, for an evil man who repented under your care, a scoundrel who found purpose in honor and integrity under your guidance. I know you don't feel worthy enough to give it, but a blessing from you is all I ask, and the least you can give."_

She sensed the profound yearning for what it was, instead of the shallow flirting he would have done in the past. Atton Rand was beyond that now, and a kiss of affection was well within his rights to receive. So she kissed him, on the forehead, trying to impart all her love for him and the others through that simple caress. He reached for her hands and she gave them to him and he pressed his lips to both before pressing his forehead to them.

_" Atton." _She wanted to ask him what was wrong, why he was behaving like this and why he refused to talk to her.

He looked up at her, before smiling, his eyes filled with sadness.

_" You're beautiful, you know that, sweetheart?" _And all of the sudden she saw the scoundrel creeping back.

Then he abruptly rose and left her in the garden, alone.

She remembered staring after him, wondering what that was about. He was the only one who sought her out. Later meditations revealed nothing, but now, on a strange bed in a strange medbay surrounded by strange people, she suddenly realized that Atton had been saying goodbye.

They knew she was leaving, that she would choose to leave them behind. The reason she did not share their vision was because she did not need to know; she was the one making the decision. They had pulled away from her because they knew nothing could change that, and so they withdrew to grieve and mourn. Atton had wanted to do the same, but he could not let her leave without a parting farewell.

They all worshipped her, almost. It made her feel bitter and uncomfortable. She was no better than any of them; in fact, in many ways she was much worse. Nothing she did seemed to dissuade them, however, in fact they seemed more and more determined to show her how wonderful she was.

Maybe Atton was right. Maybe she made a mistake. Maybe everyone had sought for the Force bonds as much as she had formed each with them. Maybe the bonds were formed because they had wanted it in the first place. She had never thought of it that way before, just as she had never believed that her departure would really pain them as much as it would pain her.

But she was no stranger to mistakes, and here she was now. Perhaps she would survive after all, and return to those she loved. Those who loved her. If they would still want her.

The Force parted before her and she opened her eyes to see the ceiling of the medbay. It was time to wake up and come out of hiding. If she was going to progress either further into the Unknown Regions or head back to her friends, she was going to have to face her present. The Force rippled around her, and she saw a strange-looking alien with a bulbous head and narrow chin.

" Ah." He said, bringing up his wrist and poking at the holograms that flickered to life. She heard beeps, indicating that something was registering on them. " Patient awake. Must call Shepard. Will want to talk to you, assuming can understand each other."

She blinked. She had no idea what he just said. It sounded nothing like any language she had ever heard of.

This was going to be interesting.


	4. Chapter Three

All that is Beautiful

Chapter Three

Shepard regarded the woman while standing next to Miranda with her arms folded. Conversation had been difficult, even though Mordin had made a breakthrough with the alphabet, so at least now they are able to read some of the words. After Chakwas did a quick checkup to make sure their newest member was healthy enough for an interview, Mordin set to work trying to link the strange alphabet with the sounds they were supposed to produce so that the translator could match them to words. Not that this would really be much use without more vocabulary terms, but it was a start.

She had no idea where this woman was from. She spoke no language Shepard ever heard of, and they pretty much only got around to learning everyone's names. She had a feeling "Jedi Exile", whatever it meant, was more of an alias or title, but did not press. At the moment, real names were not her priority.

For someone who just woke up among strangers in an unknown setting, the Jedi Exile seemed very calm and collected. Shepard was not sure if she was confident that the crew of the Normandy would not harm her, or if she was certain that it would not matter. There was also a faint ethereal glow to her now that she was awake, brightened by the calm light in her eyes. She was not a biotic, and it was not the biotic blue lights that danced over her form. Rather, she looked more like an ethereal spirit. An angel of sorts.

They had washed her strange outfit while she had been sleeping, and when Mordin finally gave her a break, the Exile donned them on.

" What do you think?" Shepard asked Miranda.

" I can't quite read her." Miranda admitted. " But she has the bearings of a nun, or a priest. I don't know."

" Maybe she's confident that God will preserve her." Shepard said wryly. " Too bad this ship is on its way to fight Reapers all the time. Unless she drops off at the Citadel, but as much as I like that dump, I don't think she'd survive a city like that. City-folk are cruel."

" She might not be as naive as she looks." Miranda reminded her. " Looks can be deceiving."

" Shepard."

It was the Exile, fully dressed. She regarded them both with eyes that seemed both deep and piercing.

" Exile." Shepard said in return, and then fell silent.

This language barrier is really inconvenient.

" Come to the mess hall." Said the commander. " I'm sure you're hungry by now. You've been unconscious for a while, and I'm not sure when you have eaten."

The Exile conducted a slight bow, which made Shepard suspicious. Did she understand what was being said? The commander then moved toward the doors, which opened as she neared. The Exile followed while Miranda rounded at the end.

Gardner looked up at the three women with a wide grin.

" Ha! Sleeping Beauty's awake! About time."

" Sleeping Beauty?" Shepard cocked an eyebrow. " How'd you come up with that?"

" Eh." Said the cook, waving a ladle. " One of the Lost Fairy-Tales. Thousands of years old, it is. Something about a really hot girl who falls asleep and then wakes up again."

" Interesting..."

" Hey, these things are primitive. and a lot got lost in the First Contact war. Anyways, you up for food?"

" Always." Grinning, the commander accepted the tray with two meals. Miranda stepped up to accept a third.

Lunch passed in silence, mostly because of the very prominent language barrier. Shepard had so many questions to ask, but she did not imagine she could articulate them properly with hand gestures.

_By the time we figure out how to communicate, the Reapers would be here._ She thought unhappily.

After a while, Samara came out of the observatory. She glanced at the Exile, who looked calmly back.

" Shepard." Said the asari. " I did not realize she was awake."

" She woke up about half an hour ago. Mordin is trying to decipher her language."

" Ah." The justicar hesitated. " I think there would not be need for that. I can transfer my knowledge of the the languages I know to her, and she will be able to communicate with us that way."

Shepard nearly struck herself in the face. How could she have forgotten that? It was how she obtained information about the Protheans when they were fighting Saren. " If you don't mind," She said to Samara, " Please do that."

" Ah." Said Samara, turning to the Exile. She hesitated, as if unsure how to proceed, especially since the Exile did not understand anything.

The Jedi, however, merely turned and folded her hands expectantly on her lap.

" I'll need you to stand." Samara began, reaching out to lift the Exile by the arm, but the woman stood without needing the prompt. Shepard wondered at that.

" Remain calm." Samara's voice became even more soothing than before. " _Embrace Eternity."_

ooooo

" I don't think Shepard wants to go to Omega." Garrus murmured as he moved the galaxy map in the CIC. " Still too close to the relay for any of our comfort, not to mention she's mentioned that she hates dealing with Aria and is probably going to run into one of her minions."

" What about Illium?" Jacob suggested.

" Why Illium?"

" We can stock up on some things that the Citadel doesn't have."

" We don't need to stock up on anything." Tali protested.

" Seriously, why do we need to plan that far ahead?" Jack snapped. " Can't we have a few days to enjoy ourselves without worrying about where we're going next?"

" Getting ready for the Reapers is a long process involving making connections and training troops." Garrus replied, his tones dismissive.

" Yeah, but we all know that Shepard's the one that's going to have to do all the work because the rest of us suck at politics." Jack replied with some rude insertions. " If she's got her head stuck then what's the point of us making any plans?"

The elevator opened to reveal Kelly Chambers. She blinked at the group in surprise.

" I'm just going to, uh, come back later." She ducked back in the elevator, away from the group huddled near her terminal.

Everyone was quiet for a moment as the elevators shut themselves.

" I have connections on Omega." Said Garrus. " Shepard's got enough on her plate. We can't just sit back and let her do everything. She's stretched thin enough as it is. You don't realize how tired she's been."

Jack swore and started saying something, but she cut herself off with another oath.

" Liara's on Illium." Said Tali. " And if she's an information broker, she can help us get what we need to get us underway when it comes to networking."

" Illium it is then." Garrus decided. " After a stop at the Citadel."

Jack swore again.

" What's wrong?" Tali asked. " It's not like you have to do any work in the meantime. Garrus and I are the ones who have to manage all the supplies and talk to people."

The ex-convict merely swore again and headed toward the elevator, slamming the button that called for it with a viciousness that seemed entirely unwarranted. The group watched as she left.

Jacob swore. " Never quite figured out what her problem is. Whatever."

The others gave some grunts of agreement before dispersing.

ooooo

Unlike Shepard's own experiences with information transfer, the Exile did not faint or suffer any side effects, other than requiring a few seconds to center herself. She turned to the two human women sitting at the table.

" Commander Shepard." She stated.

Shepard paused for a moment. " Can you understand me?"

" Yes."

The commander could not help but grin at this. She looked at Samara thankfully. The asari inclined her head slightly.

" I will be in the observatory if you need me."

" Thank you, Samara."

The Exile sat down. " I sense you have many questions for me." She began. " If it is alright with you, I would like to ask my questions first."

" Quid pro quo." Shepard replied. " To make it fair. A question for a question, an answer for an answer."

" Very well." She said. " What happened to me?"

" As far as we know," Shepard replied, " You were alone on a failing ship on the outreaches at the ends of the galaxy. You ran into some dark matter and an asteroid field and were nearly killed. We managed to extract you just in time, but we were not able to save your belongings."

" What about my lightsaber?"

" Light..." It was Shepard's turn to ask the question now, but she allowed a leeway this time. " If you mean that terminated laser beam, it was found on your person and is currently at the Research Laboratory, where Dr. Solus is keeping it. If you wish to have it returned to you, you may speak to him. It appears dangerous. Is it a weapon?"

" Yes." The Exile replied. " It is a weapon of an order to which I used to belong. The laser can burn through anything except another lightsaber, or something crafted from a special crystal."

" What were you doing out at the asteroid field all by yourself?"

The Exile hesitated. " I was...looking for someone. I was on a mission, one that I must fulfill alone. I...had to leave everyone I knew behind. It was dangerous, you see. I could not bring those I love with me."

" I see." Shepard began to ask another question, but she remembered that it was the Exile's turn to ask the question.

The Jedi waited for a moment before speaking. " I sense that you are the leader of this ship, Commander Shepard, and that all of you seem to share a goal."

" The galaxy is in danger of attack by the Reapers." Shepard replied.

" Reapers? They are dangerous?"

" If more than one arrives, the galaxy will fall." Said Shepard. " What was this mission you were on?"

" I was in exile. Thus, Jedi Exile." Now, speaking in a language that could be translated, Shepard realized that the woman did indeed use a title. " I exile myself from the galaxy to seek Revan, a fellow...Jedi. The galaxy is under threat from the True Sith. I intend to find Revan and help him defeat them."

At this point, if Shepard had not already guessed the woman was from a different galaxy, she was certain now.

" I have a feeling that you and I might need to get to know each other." She said to the Exile.

The Jedi smiled. It was a pleasant smile. Shepard did not know her very well, but she sensed that this person was kind and good at heart.

" Thank you for saving my life." The woman said. " You need to fight these Reapers, and I need to fight the True Sith. Perhaps there is a way for us to help each other."

There was nothing manipulative about the way she said it. She was offering her services and politing requesting Shepard's. The commander nodded, sliding her chair back and standing up. The Exile followed suit. Miranda piled their meals onto the same tray wordlessly, sensing a dismissal without hearing one.

" Come." Said the commander. " Let's take a walk."


End file.
